Archive for the ‘Dolder Classics’ tag

Many first-generation BMW 328 models can claim racing history, but few can match the intrigue-rich East German racing heritage of the alloy-bodied BMW 328 “Grosser Werkmeister,” a Cold War relic that was seized and raced by the state. This BMW 328 has an occasionally spotty history, and is now headed to auction in Switzerland.

The original BMW 328 was only built between 1936 and 1940, but its success in racing is the stuff of legend. Despite its brief production lifespan, the 328 amassed more than 100 victories, including class wins at Le Mans, in the Alpine Rally and in the Mille Miglia. While stock-bodied BMW 328 models were competitive, changing the body to reduce weight and improve aerodynamics was a common practice that endured well beyond the car’s production years. The Grosser Werkmeister is one such example, built in 1952 in Dingelstädt, East Germany, by George Werkmeister, the foreman and co-owner of a body shop there. He used a tubular space frame welded to lightened frame rails and wrapped in an aerodynamic aluminum body designed by George Hufnagel, a former aerodynamicist for Auto Union. Even the underbody was smooth for optimized airflow (and, presumably, negative lift), and the car’s fenderwells were skirted in competition trim.

The EMW inline-six features triple downdraft carburetors.

Power came from a 1,971cc inline six-cylinder engine, constructed at BMW’s Eisenach plant (which, under Soviet rule, manufactured cars, motorcycles and components under the EMW brand after 1952). Though the original output was said to be in the range of 115 horsepower, later modifications raised this to some 135 horsepower, which proved to be more than sufficient for the car’s 770-kilogram (1,694-pound) curb weight. A four-speed manual transmission helped to give the car a claimed top speed of 220 KPH (136 MPH), while the suspension consisted of transverse leaf springs and shocks in all four corners. Like other 328 models, the Grosser Werkmeister retained the car’s original live rear axle, which likely commanded the driver’s full attention on circuits with less-than-smooth pavement.

East Germany may not have been a hotbed of international racing competition in the post-war years, but there were sufficient cars to fill grids in both E-class sports-car racing and in Formula 2, two classes in which the Grosser Werkmeister was run. The car debuted in E-class competition at the Sachsenring on September 7, 1952, though driver Hans Althoff found it challenging to drive at speed and did not deliver the expected win. The same held true for the car’s next competition outing, at Avus on September 28, and the Grosser Werkmeister was reconfigured to run in Formula 2 for the 1953 season. Althoff was replaced by driver Karl Weber, who took the car to a second-place finish in its first race of the new season and to a third-place finish in the 1953 East German championship. Weber also drove the car for the three races contested in 1954, after Werkmeister emigrated to West Germany in March 1953 and the state duly seized the car, then proceeded to campaign it under the guidance of the East German Trust Operations Foreman.

The restored cockpit is minimalistic, as one would expect in a purpose-built race car.

In 1959, the car was fitted with a steel body and converted from a race car to a road car. The original BMW 328 engine was removed and replaced with the larger inline-six engine from an EMW 340, and the car remained in this trim until 2006, when a three-year restoration saw the Grosser Werkmeister fitted with a replacement aluminum body to match the original, as well as a period-correct EMW 328 inline-six engine rated at the same 135 horsepower as the 1953 car.

Oldtimer Galerie Toffen, which will offer the racing special at the June 8 Dolder Classics sale in Zurich, Switzerland, estimates a selling price of 1.5 million Swiss francs, or about $1.57 million, and the car is said to include FIA historic documentation, FIVA paperwork and an EC street registration. For more information, visit OldTimerGalerie.ch.